Lincoln softball off to slow start but slams Woodland

Joshua Warner/News Messenger CorrespondentLincoln High’s Rachel Dal Porto takes a solid cut at a pitch against visiting Woodland last week. Dal Porto added two runs to Lincolns 14 total as the Zebras defeated the Wolves by 10 runs.

The 5-3 Woodland softball Wolves invaded Lincoln High to try and add to the Zebras 0-6-1 start but got a bit of an unwelcome as the Blue Sox hammered the visitors for 14 runs in 5 2/3 innings to invoke the mercy rule, March 22.
However, Wheatland came calling on Friday and handed the Fighting Zebras an 11-3 setback.
“It goes game-by-game,” said Lincoln head coach Donna Tofft. “We’re so young that I was really excited after (the Del Oro) game and we go Saturday and we regress. We’re playing up and down.”
Tofft was referring to the Zebras battling the Golden Eagles to a 0-0 standoff earlier in the season.
Against Woodland the club was up, way up.
Starting pitcher Miranda Schroeder had a masterful game holding the Wolves to just four hits. She fanned five of the first nine batters she faced and allowed only one to reach base.
“My confidence is getting up there. Sometimes I get like, ‘Oh no, I’m not doing well,’ but I try to keep myself up,” said Schroeder after the game. “I have confidence in my team that we can pull through.”
Lincoln led 4-0 after three innings before letting Woodland back into the game. The visitors scored three in the top of the fourth when the Zebras lost a bit of focus. But the drama was short lived.
Lead-off hitter Ashleigh Stidman slammed a triple to right field and scored on Courtney Jones’ sacrifice fly. Abi Lund and Schroeder then reached base with Lund and pinch runner Lacy Lewis both scoring to increase Lincoln’s lead to four.
From that point on it was all Zebras as they knocked out Woodland starting pitcher Kelsey Goodner in the fourth inning.
Relief pitcher Jamie Burks was then greeted with a 3-run, home run blast by Stidman. That started Lincoln’s march to end the game when the Zebras went up by 10 runs.
“It was really easy to see the ball and I was just ready to hit. I was really due,” said Stidman, who bats left handed. “Usually left handed hitters in softball play the short game so most of the time they’ll play in on me, so if they’re in I have the power to hit it over them.”
The Zebras will travel to Bear River to open Pioneer Valley League play before spring break. They will come back to host a game against Center, April 11.
Lincoln 14, Woodland 4
Woodland ab r h bi
Logan 3 0 0 0
Bair 2 1 0 0
Tharp 3 2 1 0
Davis 3 1 0 0
Goodner 2 0 1 0
Shoffit 1 0 0 0
Lerch 2 0 0 0
Tadlock 3 0 1 1
Stanley 1 0 0 0
Gall 1 0 0 0
Totals 21 4 3 1
3B – Goodner, Tadlock. LOB – 3.
Lincoln ab r h bi
Stidman cf 4 2 2 3
Jones c 3 1 2 4
Lund ss 1 2 1 0
Esparza 3b 3 1 2 1
Dal Porto rf 1 2 0 0
Schroeder p 3 0 1 0
Armstrong ph 1 1 1 1
Thompson lf 3 2 1 1
Bleichwehl 2b 2 0 0 0
MacQueen 1b 3 2 1 1
Lewis pr 0 1 0 0
Totals 24 14 11 11
2B – Lund, Schroeder, MacQueen. 3B – Stidman. HR – Stidman. LOB – 5.
Pitching
Woodland IP H R ER SO
Goodner 4 1/3 8 11 9 3
Burks 1 1/3 2 3 3 2
Lincoln IP H R ER SO
Schroeder 5 4 4 1 6